The Kodak PlayTouch mini camcorder is an average camcorder that produces ordinary results of video alongwith some design matters. These aspects of the Kodak PlayTouch come in the way of making it a top numbered mini camcorder.

Review

Whenever a company brings out a new product in the market, it is expected to bring an advanced and improved version of its previous product. However, when this does not happen it brings great amounts of disappointment, such is the case with the Kodak PlayTouch with a model number of Zi10.

The PlayTouch or Zi10 is an updated version of the outstanding mini camcorder Zi8 which was the only model to have an external mic jack with it. However, the PlayTouch features pretty much the same as the Zi8 including the exterior mic jack but a 3 inch touch screen, a smaller and more attractive body and a wider lens. The movie quality of the PlayTouch is not as fine as the Zi8 or the waterproof PlaySports. Thus the touch screen of the PlayTouch is not so advantageous to outweigh its disadvantages.

Key Speculations

The price of the Kodak PlayTouch is $199.99 but its video quality is not good. The dimensions (HWD) of the mini camcorder are 4.3 x 2.3 x 0.6 inches and its weight alongwith the battery and media is 5.1 ounces. It has a storage capacity of 128 MB internal memory and it accepts SD/SDHC memory cards. The resolution of the PlayTouch is 5 megapixels and sensor size and type of 1/3.2 inch and CMOS respectively. The size of its LCD is 3 inches and it has a resolution of 230 K dots. Other than that it has a fixed focus lens with measures of 2.844 mm at 1080 p and 33 mm at 720 p. The PlayTouch supports both audio and video formats, H.264 video and stereo AAC audio. Its highest resolution is 1,920 x 1,080 at 30 fps and it has a digital image stabilization type.

Design and Features

The PlayTouch is an improvement of the Zi8 and it is good looking and more comfortable and perfect in size than the Zi8. It has a metal covering which makes it a strongly built one. It has a small and compact size which makes it fit in your pant pocket easily and also makes it live up to the full meaning of a mini camcorder. On top of the camcorder is a switch to change normal shooting to any other mode along with a jack used for linking headphones and an external stereo mic.

The lens is located on the front of the camcorder with the mono microphone, an IR receiver and a record light beside it. Underneath the lens you will see the cover of the removable battery box. On the right side of the battery cover under the power button is the SD/SDHC memory card slot and on the left side is an AV jack. The Record/Select button is on the back of the mini camcorder.

The Kodak PlayTouch mini camcorder includes a number of features such as a stereo mic/Mini HDMI, USB, headphone, a white auto balance, a 3.3 feet to infinity focus with 6 inches macro, black and white color effect alongwith sepia, high saturation and 1970’s film look. The Kodak PlayTouch is not a bad mini camcorder overall but seems like an effort by Kodak to compensate the video quality with the fun touch screen.